Prelude - “Come, Christians, Join to sing” [Arr. by D. Evans] - Sarah Park
Welcome - Liz Meeker
Welcome to Mantua Center Christian Church -- a community seeking to have open minds, open hearts, and open arms.
- Whether online or in the house this morning, we want to welcome you to our service today. Please take a few moments and greet those seated near you.
- INVITATION FOR MISSION UPDATES:
Ministry Leaders and congregants are welcome to come forward to the mic, to give a mission update or share ways for people to get involved in missions and ministries.
Scripture - Psalm 105:1-5 Liz Meeker
1O give thanks to the Lord, call on his name, make known his deeds among the peoples.
2Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works.
3Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually.
5Remember the wonderful works he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,
*Response - Weave #495
Weave, weave, weave us together, Weave us together, in unity and love.
Weave, weave, weave us together, weave us together, together in love.
*Call to Worship - Liz Meeker
One: Gather us in, the brokenhearted and the joyful.
All: Gather us in, the weak and the strong.
One: Gather us in the fearful and the brave.
All: Gather us in, the young and the old.
One: Gather us in, to sing of God’s works.
All: Gather us in, to praise God.
One: Gather us in, to worship and to wonder.
All: Gather us in to know God’s love.
*Opening Hymn - Come, Thou Almighty King #27, v.1 & 3
1 Come, thou almighty King,
help us thy name to sing;
help us to praise:
one God, all-glorious,
o'er all victorious,
come and reign over us,
ancient of days.
3 Come, holy Comforter,
thy sacred witness bear,
in this glad hour!
Thou, who almighty art,
now rule in every heart,
and ne'er from us depart,
Spirit of power.
Invitation to Generosity
Invitation - Liz Meeker
Offertory- “All to Jesus, I Surrender” [by W. S. Weeden]
Response - “Give Thanks” #528
Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks to the Holy One,
give thanks because he’s given Jesus Christ his Son. Give Thanks!
Offering Prayer - Liz Meeker
Children’s Moment - Rick Painley
Pastoral Prayer & The Lord’s Prayer Liz Meeker
Holy Communion
Meditation - Roger Cram
Hymn - “Let us Break Bread” #425, v. 1-3
1 Let us break bread together on our knees; (on our knees)
let us break bread together on our knees. (on our knees)
[Refrain:]
When I fall on my knees,
with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me. (on me)
2 Let us drink wine together on our knees; (on our knees)
let us drink wine together on our knees. (on our knees) [Refrain]
3 Let us praise God together on our knees; (on our knees)
let us praise God together on our knees. (on our knees) [Refrain]
Prayer - Pete Pruszynski
Words of Institution - Pete Pruszynski
Music -“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” [Arr. By L. Mason] Sarah Park
Special Music
“God’s Mercy” - Jan Green [by various composers - Cooper, Schrea & Strack, arranged by Jan Green]
Scripture - Luke 15:11-24 - Rick Painley
The Parable of the Lost Son
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
Sermon - “&” - Rick Painley
Chad is fond of asking, “Through what lens/lenses are you viewing a scripture. Well, this spring I was reading these books: Lost and Found by Kathryn Schulz and Inciting Joy by Ross Gay. In both books the authors cited A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis. So, I had to read that one, too. These books chased me back to today’s scripture: Luke 15: 11-24:
11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
The Word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God as we turn to God in prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, our Creator. Amen.
“My son was lost and is found”
Let’s start with ‘lost’. What can be lost? What things do you lose often? (Carol will transfer answers to wall via computer.) (keys, wallet, ID, phone, car, tv remote)
How about non-material items? (job, faith, hope, a person, mind, dignity, virginity, balance)
Are there any positive losses? (self-consciousness, fear, lost in thought, lost in a book)
Let’s talk about some of the things on our list. First, the material items. On average (based on insurance claims and surveys) we lose 9 objects every day. By the time we’re 60 years old we have lost more than 200,000 items. Not to mention the time we have lost looking for those items. Each of us will spend around 6 months of our lives looking for lost things. And the money we lose? Each year, just in the United States, we lose $30B on just cellphones.
I suppose, in one respect, we should be grateful that we have so much to lose. But it doesn’t feel that way, does it? I imagine it’s because when we lose these valuables, we are simultaneously the victim and the villain.
And it’s not just the keys to the car that can be lost, but the entire car…Where did I park? In March 2014 Malaysian Flight 370 disappeared. 9 years ago. They still don’t know where it is. How is that possible? Can you really just lose an entire plane that can carry 250 people? Yes. The world is such a vast place that you can fit 180 billion of those planes on the floor of the Indian Ocean. There is nothing too large that it cannot be lost.
Disclaimer: I would like it to be noted no one has ever been lost on the Mantua Center canoe/kayak trip.
Looking at the list of non-material items, the idea of losing someone is the most challenging. I have always thought that it was a euphemism to say’ “I lost my friend to cancer.” However, the verb to lose comes from the Old English meaning “to perish, separate, pull apart.” So, not quite so euphemistic as I thought.
This kind of loss leads us to grief. C.S. Lewis lost his wife to cancer. He started journaling his thoughts and feelings and the result is this book. He bares his soul in this book and, in fact, he wrote it under a pseudonym when it was first published because the reader would swear that the author had lost all hope and faith.
But these 2 writers looked at how Lewis wrestled with grief and how through grief they could find meaning and even joy.
I particularly love how Ross Gay describes the process. He explains that grief shouldn’t be gotten over; it should be gotten into. Yes, we are going to fall apart, but we are going to fall into each other. And holding each other through the falling is joy. (Repeat)
Grief is a gift but it’s not easy. It takes muscles; the muscles of compassion and muscles of courage. I think that’s why I find myself drawn to this congregation. I found joy here. I have found joy here because this community is filled with compassion and courage. In the same way in our scripture we see the lost son summoning the courage to humble himself before his father, his father finding compassion in his heart and there is joy in the celebration.
But is that the end of the story? No, it isn’t, is it? The other son. What’s his reaction? Luke 15 25-32: 25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
The other son is totally…mad. And his father tries to remind him that everything he has is his, but does that satisfy him? Nooooooo. He remains upset. He can’t find the courage nor compassion to welcome home his brother. This is where my perspective of this passage has changed. I would venture to say that this brother’s attitude is a zero-sum gain. It’s all or nothing. He can’t imagine that his father has enough love (or money) for him and his brother. His world view is ‘either/or.’ Not ‘and.’
Do you notice that this brother never has an epiphany? He never says, “Oh, yea, dad, you’re right. I’ll welcome my brother home.” The lack of acknowledgement by this brother is a fore-warning to us. There will always be these people that show no kindness and only want for themselves. We will always have to be ready to have the courage to love. We will always have to be ready to combat the ‘either/or’ and embrace ‘and’. Look at just our recent memory:
- Nazi concentration camps and experiments on the disabled…either/or
- McCarthyism…either/or
- HIV/AIDS…either/or
- Jim Crow laws and redlining…either/or
- Don’t Say Gay!...either/or
- Denied a raise or promotion on the chance that you might become pregnant?...either/or
Either /or is easy. It’s weak. It takes no muscles, just an attitude to demonize and marginalize.
Jesus did not live a life of either/or. Who did he hang out with? (sinners AND tax collectors AND prostitutes AND the sick AND lepers AND the unclean AND the Samaritan woman at the well AND the poor). Jesus included.
Jesus is ‘and’
Jesus was asked what are the most important commandments. His reply? “You must love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind. AND You must love your neighbor as yourself” Jesus regularly flexed his muscles of compassion and courage. Let us continue to follow Jesus and live a life of ‘and.’
May it be so.
Our closing hymn is #467 Fill the World with Love
*Closing Hymn - Fill the World with Love #467
Benediction - Liz Meeker
Postlude - “What a Wonderful Change in my Life” [by C. H. Gabriel] - Sarah Park